The Marsilis: The wonder family that doesn’t feel pain

Superpowers such as flight and invisibility are things we only see in comic books, movies, or series although it never hurts to daydream about having them. But did you know that a real Italian family possesses a superhuman quality that most of us would have wished for? Yes, this wonder family has a rare genetic condition that causes them to have an “extremely low sensitivity to pain.”

This means that this family can experience broken bones and drink scalding hot beverages and not even flinch due to the pain. The Marsilis could even down a whole pepper and still be unaffected, all because of the ZFHX2 gene.

Dr. James Cox of the University College London is one of the lead authors of the study analyzing the Marsili family and their rare quality. Dr. Cox gave us a summary of what is really going on inside the bodies of this wonder family.

“The members of this family can burn themselves or experience pain-free bone fractures without feeling any pain. But they have a normal intraepidermal nerve fibre density, which means their nerves are all there, they’re just not working how they should be.“

Although the team is not sure how the genetic mutation functions, they hypothesized that “the variant disrupts how ZFHX2 regulates other genes that have been linked to pain signaling.” The disruption results in the amazing pain tolerance of the Marsili family.

Being known as the only ones to have this genetic condition, the scientists have named it as the “Marsili syndrome.” But it’s not all daisies and butterflies, some family members sustained injuries that have not healed properly because they didn’t even know it happened in the first place.

Despite such a dangerous consequence, sensory neurobiologist John Wood asked the Marsilis if they would like to give this “special power” up and all of them said no.

“I asked them if they would like to normally sense pain and they said no.“

Do you envy the Marsili family for not being able to feel that much physical pain? What do you think are some of the major consequences of this condition? Share your thoughts, reactions, and opinions in the comments section below!